Entilzha Firesong
Factual Information: 1. Firesong was once a member of the Magus Senate of Dalaran, reaching Archmage status. 2. Firesong was unsatisfied with the percieved lack of respect given him by the Inner Council, as such, Firesong left the Senate on bad terms. 3. Firesong founded the Dalaran Magocracy and now leads it. Speculated Information: #Firesong is said to possess a mage tower somewhere on Azeroth, though it is not believed to be reachable through ordinary means and is speculated to be protected by a form of dimensional folding or some other technique of that nature. #He is also reported to often frequent the Sin'dorei capital of Silvermoon, apparently utilizing his stealth abilities to evade the guards, whom he understands would be honor-bound to attack him on sight but utilizes the stealth techniques as he has no interest in harming them for doing their jobs. Inside the city, he has been sighted enjoying the hookah lounge set aside for magi, often spending several hours there in the company of friends he once served with in Dalaran. It is unclear if these visits are merely social in nature or part of an effort to open reunification talks between the elven races. Entilzha has supposedly stated that he intends to retire in Silvermoon or Eversong one day, though despite his current lack of interest in politics, he remains uncomfortable with the Regent-Lord's orcish allies, as well as the fact that he would be branded a traitor by the alliance, harming any reunification efforts which will require respect from both elven factions in order to bear fruit. #Firesong is known to have interests on the ruined remains of the planet Draenor. Such interests are believed to relate to either the acquisition of ancient relics, which Firesong is always seeking regardless of their location, and/or the ravaged Kirin Var village, a former Kirin Tor outpost in Netherstorm. #Archmage Firesong is reported to be extremely interested in the Arcanomicon, and while he does not believe its recovery is realistic, he is believed to be developing his own charts of ley line and ley junction positions on both Azeroth and the shattered Draenor, and is said to be eager to speak with anyone possessing knowledge regarding the Arcanomicon itself. #Based on inquiries he's reportedly made concerning traversing the boundries between planes, and questioning what lies beyond the Twisting Nether, Firesong is believed to give strong consideration to the theory, if not outright belief, that the universe is truly a megaverse of sorts, with a variety of multiverses including the one bound by the nether and containing the material plane along with other known planes, and some with but one minor difference from the known Azeroth, multiverses in which history has unfolded in drastically different ways, others completely different from Azeroth yet with at least some inhabitable planes, and others unable to support life, and possibly even time, as it is known. If Firesong is indeed conducting research into this area, he keeps it closely guarded, and such research falls under no established magical or academic schools. #More recently, it's been reported that Firesong has stated arrangements are in progress which would permit him free and unfettered access to Quel'thalas, Silvermoon, and the Sunwell, including settlement priviledges. Reportedly the time and effort required for this arrangement to be formalized, and for Firesong to not be branded a traitor to the Alliance in the proess, is quite complex, and requires much discretion, and thus is not expected to be completed for several months. It is unclear if this arrangement involves formal citizenship and/or the swearing of any oaths. Firesong has reportedly stated that he would betray neither Silvermoon nor Dalaran, simply requiring free access to all elven lands to pursue his agenda, and that he initially desires a teaching position at Sunstrider Academy. Publications and Writings Reflections on the Sin'Dorei I am often asked, especially as a Highbourne, about the ongoing hostilities between the Kirin Tor and Sunreavers, which risks serious escalation to all-out war between Dalaran and Silvermoon if cooler heads do not prevail soon. Since my relationship to and thoughts regarding the Sin'dorei are complex and not able to be conveyed in af few sentences, I decided to draft this tome on the subject. Having been born in Vashj’ir and spent most of my life in Zin-Azshari, any family members (or their descendants) who survived the disaster uncursed, as was quite possible considering the short distance from the ruins of Vashj’ir to the Eastern Kingdoms likely gathered with the surviving Highbourne around the new Sunwell in Quel'Thalas. Due to their ages my parents would not have survived until the Sunwell was tainted by the Burning Legion. I have been informed that one's life can only be sustained via that source for around 12,000 years. My parents were both older than that when I was taken into Queen Azshara's service at 13 for training as an arcanist, so they almost certainly no longer live, but I did have a younger sister Salandra, and since I have had no contact with my family since before being accepted into the Shen'dralar order (Queen Azshara liked to assure her most trusted arcanists were loyal to her and her alone), I can't rule out the possibility of additional siblings, possibly living among the Sin'dorei, as Salandra very well may be as she was born not long before the disaster. Given how early in life I left my family and how absorbed I was in my studies, my duties to the Queen, and the Well of Eternity, I seldom thought of my family by the time I turned 1,000 but have been thinking of them much more of late, as we're at war with Sin'dorei and it's possible I'm out there shooting frostbolts at my niece or nephew, possibly even my own brother or sister! With that in mind, I did not take the decision to join the Kirin Tor effort lightly, or blindly follow Dalaran's lead. I do what I do both for the preservation of Dalaran and for the good of the Sin'dorei people themselves. It's ironic that at times that means killing them, and it pains me deeply to see how deep into depravity many of a race that once possessed so much nobility has sunk. I say many because to make sweeping statements about any entire race is not only how purges and other such atrocities begin, but is bound to be proven incorrect by at least some members of that race and therefore an unsound way of making decisions. Naturally given the topic of this book I will be making generalizations of what I have experienced to be true more often than not of the Sin'dorei, but should be taken with the strong caveat that no such generalizations can be 100% accurate. From a physical standpoint, I view the Kaldorei and Sin'dorei as a singular race, separated by centuries of choosing different paths after the disaster, but due to our long lifespans, most individuals need only go back a few generations to reach an ancestor living before the world shattered, and the races were one. Physical differences which have emerged are minor and cosmetic, namely hair and eye color, as well as complexion, with the Sin'dorei generally having a lighter complexion than the Kaldorei. This has its roots in the vastness of the ancient empire of Kaldorei and Quel'dorai led by Queen Azshara. The people of Zin-Azshari and lands to the East, including Vashj’ir where I was born, bore more resemblance to modern Sin'dorei and spoke in a slightly different dialect than their Western counterparts, from Eldre'Thalas and the woodland regions to the far northwest where our people are believed to have originated, and where the city of Darnassus now stands. The Westerners were generally known for their darker, often green hair, and generally had a darker complexion. Due to heavy interbreeding this was by no means completely true, but as the races separated, the dominant genetic traits from each became more and more common. Still though, one can find Kaldorei children with the lighter features more associated with the Sin'dorei, and vice-versa, and genetic mingling of the factions continues to this day, lesser so now due to the political situation, but several Kaldorei/Sin'dorei children were born in Dalaran during the time the races coexisted there, if uneasily at times, and those children could easily fit it among either race. My green hair is in fact not my natural color - I was born with the blonde hair common to Sin'dorei, and when I emerged from Eldre'Thalas thought it best to color my hair. While fairer-toned Kaldorei are not uncommon, as a Highbourn I felt it may raise suspicion in certain quarters, especially on visits to Darnassus, where I feel unwelcome enough simply for being a magi. My skin has darkened I believe both due to age and the exposure to the demon Immol'thar while in isolation; although I consumed the energy sparingly I still did so over a long period of time, tapering down my magical addiction. Most of the surviving Shen'dralar and other Highbourne who returned from exile however, were originally from the West, as a new headquarters for the Shen'dralar was constructed in Eldre'Thalas about two millennia before the Sundering. The order had previously been based out of Zin-Azshari, where I remained stationed until right before the disaster, when Azshara gathered up all of the remaining Shen'dralar not under the influence of Sargeras in the middle of the night and ordered us to immediately leave for Eldre'Thalas and begin an offensive against the trolls and Aqir in the far West, ordering us to secure a port and significant territory along the Western coast (which would have been of minimal strategic value, but was a ploy to get any capable of interfering with the summoning ritual out of the city before it began). Due to the location of the new headquarters, the Order had been taking in many more initiates from the West, and the Shen'dralar of Eldre'Thalas generally looked similar to the native population and therefore the physical appearance of most surviving Highbourne closely matches modern Darnassus Kaldorei, aside from our eyes, which is due to the use of magic and younger Kaldorei who study the arcane will with time develop the same glowing yellow eyes. Many Shen'dralar from the West originally remained - Tortheldrin was noted for his long blonde locks, quite similar to my natural appearance - he was from Zin-Azshari I believe, but many "Highbourne" alive today were in fact born in or around Eldre'Thalas in the few millennia following the disaster, not before, explaining why most of the surviving Highbourne resemble the elves of Darnassus. Others likely color their hair like I do, as once it became common knowledge that relations with Darnassus had been established, the sentiment of needing to "blend in" among the Alliance races was commonplace, especially given the negative perceptions many hold of the Highbourne. Another significant difference between the folk of the Eastern and Western was our dialects. While a speaker of one dialect could understand the other, pronunciation was significantly different along with many informal and slang words. As contact was severed after the disaster, the two dialects evolved into modern Darnassian and Thalassian. Having spent my whole life prior to the Sundering in or around Zin-Azshari and Vashj’ir while not on assignment, I spoke with a strong Eastern dialect, and while many in Eldre'Thalas spoke in the Western tongue, I was romantically involved with a woman named Astralla for many millennia there, and spoke with her far more than anyone else, and since she was born in Suramar, I retained my eastern accent upon emerging, as I discovered shockingly when I attempted to speak with a Darnassian for the first time and she became frightened believing me to be Sin’dorei. Luckily Moonlance was nearby to settle the situation, and while I can understand modern Darnassian perfectly, I seldom speak it, for I too often will unconsciously use phrases which today only exist in Thalassian, and any native Darnassian speakers who have held conversations with or listened to Sin'dorei speak can easily identify the similarity between my accent and theirs. For this reason I mostly speak in the common tongue developed by the humans. Learning it was necessary to study in Dalaran, and to serve in the Alliance military, and while crude and simplistic compared to either elvish dialect, allows me to get the point across without raising suspicion, and I visit Darnassus anyway. I can understand and speak Thalassian, and when the Sin'dorei still lived in Dalaran, they often told me I spoke with less of an accent than the Darnassians did. So given my close relations with the Sin'dorei, why then do I choose to fight and often kill them on a daily basis? Because they were once such a proud an glorious people, who created what was in my opinion the greatest civilization Azeroth has ever seen, and if they had a clue how far they have fallen, they'd never die down like lambs for orc mongrels to send to their slaughter. I only visited Ancient Quel'Thalas, before the legion tainted the Sunwell, a few times; when word of the flourishing new Highbourne capital, and magical power source, reached Eldre'Thalas, many quietly left their isolation and relocated there (particularly those who might have had relatives in Silvermoon, which further explains the physical differences). Tortheldrin, already showing signs of instability from the amount of demonic energy he was consuming, forbade any Shen'dralar from going there, on penalty of death, claiming safety as the reason in stating that if any Shen'dralar were recognized they could both be blamed for the disaster or bring attention Tortheldrin didn't want to Eldre'Thalas, though I had no doubt it was to avoid defections. My duties as a Lorekeeper however granted me greater opportunity to leave without arousing suspicion. As long as I brought back tomes containing the knowledge sought, Tortheldrin or Kildrath never asked how or where I obtained them. This freedom combined with my teleportation skill, weakened as it was from my reduce intake of energy, was still sufficient to transport myself to the Eastern continent. Several sites of interest lie on the remaining Eastern landmass, especially the Twilight Grove, once a revered religious site, in what is now Duskwood, and the ruins of Vashj’ir lie just offshore (though I was capable of reaching the ruins with the aid of breathing potions, to spare my magical energy, in my weakened state I was not strong enough to face the Naga residing there, and was horrified at the thought that some of them could be my parents). However there was no shortage of tomes lying about in Silvermoon City, where several grand libraries had been erected with a similar purpose as the Shen'dralar library - to preserve, protect, and pass on knowledge from before the Sundering. These excursions took place before my hair was colored, and my skin tone had changed only slightly, so as long as I procured appropriate garb, which was easy to do from merchants along the outskirts, I was able to walk right into the city without the slightest bit of notice. Given that the residents were all addicted to the magical energy of the Sunwell, my glowing eyes seemingly fit right in. While Zin-Azshari and Suramar were far larger and more visually impressive, Silvermoon was the most impressive site I have seen since, and I almost cried upon seeing the glory of the city, and how my people had rebuilt their culture, and learned from the mistakes of Azshara, using the Sunwell with contemplation and wisdom, not the recklessness of Azshara's era. Nearly everyone I met was both accomplished in the arcane arts, well-educated, and conscious of the fact that with great power comes great responsibility. I considered remaining but decided against it for several reasons. One being that I feared if I did not return Tortheldrin might harm Astralla. I also feared (as was unfortunately proven true) that in time this new magical source, the Sunwell, would again draw the attention of the Burning Legion. In addition, I was doing quite well at tapering off my magical addiction, already a millennium in, and while it would take several more to complete, I feared if I remained near the Sunwell I would not be able to maintain the taper giving that it lacked the taint of the imprisoned demon, which I feared and greatly motivated me to feed upon as little as possible. Tortheldrin's warnings about safety were also not completely unfounded - I dared not approach the Sunwell. It was on a nearby Island and I could feel it's radiance from Silvermoon, but felt approaching to be a bad idea as if I was to be recognized anywhere it would be there. No illusions I could maintain would fool the magi guarding the well, and even if I reached it safely, I would have likely drawn so much it would have not only destroyed my taper, but certainly draw attention. I did visit the Sunwell once after it's restoration - some Sin'dorei friends (whose names I will not give for their own protection) brought me along on a pilgrimage - I removed the dye from my hair and if a Shattered Sun soldier said I was his cousin, none would question it, and none did, especially because in a sense it was very much true. I drew deeply from the Well on that occurrence, my magical addiction long a thing of the past, but I made a total of three visits to Silvermoon while in isolation, and stayed clear of the Sunwell Plateau all three times, focusing on recovering tomes from the libraries, many of which were in the Western Half of the City that was destroyed, and the copies I "acquired" may be the only in existence. I wish I got to visit more often, but could not do so without arousing suspicion. When I emerged from isolation, the Sin’dorei I encountered were vastly different from the wonderful elves I met in old Silvermoon. They had taken the loss of the Sunwell extremely hard - allowing hate and anger to rule them; even after its restoration their sense of bitterness and resentment and having been wronged did not just go away. Having completely lost the wisdom of their ancestors, which was learned the hard way during the Sundering, most of them were reckless, angry, and vengeful, even if they couldn't say over what, as the "Remember the Sunwell!" mentality was such a large part of their cultural identity, going as far as changing the name of their race, it did not simply vanish with the restoration of the Well. I was told they made invaluable allies during the Lich King campaign, something I do not doubt having trained with them, and fought both with and against them, but they use the pure energy of the Well to lash out in anger and hatred, filling them with rage. I fear that if they actually knew how to make use of the Sunwell's full potential, some of them would use it to flatten entire cities. As I said earlier, these descriptions do not apply to all Sin'dorei, and I while living among them in Dalaran met many who were thoughtful and intelligent, and wanted to heal their people's wounds. Silvermoon had suffered much, the combination of the Scourge and the Burning Legion would have been too great for a lesser civilization to survive, but they survived deeply scarred, and the wise among them realize this. Their leadership has not done anything to address matters, choosing to ally with the bloodthirsty orcs only fueled their hatred and bloodlust. While I believe Silvermoon chose to join the Horde largely out of allegiance to Sylvanas Windrunner, and because the Draenei had joined the Alliance, it has taken them down a terrible path. Garrosh has only fueled their hatred and treachery while acting without concern for their lives or well-being. I fully support Lady Jaina's actions, and took part personally in clearing them out of Dalaran. Several I was able to convince to put down their weapons and come to the hold, but sadly not all. I will admit the timing couldn't have been worse, as the King of Stormwind secretly negotiating with Lor'themar Theron about rejoining the Alliance - during operation Shieldwall I was ordered to enter a horde encampment disguised as a Pandaren native known as a "grummel", who made their living as traders and were thus not seen with suspicion. To my shock Garrosh and Lor'themar were standing right there. Garrosh only muttered something rude to me, but Lor'themar spoke openly about his disdain for Garrosh and how he brought his people here as a request to an ally, and instead Garrosh was sending them carelessly to their deaths in ancient mogu vaults. Joining the alliance is exactly what the Sin'dorei need to heal their wounds, and restore the wisdom and greatness of their civilization. I have my issues with the Kaldorei of Darnassus, but they and the Sin'dorei are one, and the skill of the Kaldorei at the Druidic arts could do much to heal the wounds within the Sin'dorei. I do not doubt that a day of reconciliation will come, but sadly it is not today. Lady Jaina had no choice but to do what she did - having rejected numerous pleas by King Varian to aid the Alliance cause, Lady Jaina was determined to uphold the neutrality of Dalaran, as a bastion of hope, and of peace, even after she bore the destruction of Theramore by a horde mana-bomb. I supported her actions then, and it was naive, if righteous. In return the Sunreavers spit in her face, violating the Dalaran armistice by using the city to steal the Divine Bell from Darnassus. Critics of Lady Jaina's actions will often cry that she blamed the whole of the Sunreavers for the actions of the few, and that innocents died in the retaking of the city. Several basic facts undermine this line of reasoning. One, documents recovered by SI-7 containing mission objectives for horde soldiers fighting under the Dominance Offensive indicate that Sunreaver knowledge of the theft of the Divine Bell heist was widespread, and this "few bad apples" theory floated by those who disagree with Lady Jaina's actions, among both the Alliance and Horde, is an outright lie. Those among the Sunreavers who violated the neutrality of Dalaran by using the city to aid one side in the wider Horde-Alliance war, put their loved ones in the city at risk, and Aethas Sunreaver was either in on the plot, or a poor leader due to negligence if he truly was unaware of something so many of his people were involved in, which I very much doubt. In addition, upon hearing of the treachery, Lady Jaina ordered Aethas and the rest of the Sunreavers out of the city. She had no other choice - allowing them to remain would have meant handing the city to the horde, as I have little doubt the Sunreavers would have called in reinforcements and attempted to seize the city for themselves, leading to much more bloodshed and possibly the loss of Dalaran. The fact civilians died in the retaking of Dalaran is regrettable, but the Sunreavers should have thought about the consequences of their actions - by breeching the armistice, they made the city unsafe for their own family members, and refusal to leave was outright foolish. Any civilians standing by the balcony when the situation between Jaina and Aethas was unfolding had to be mad. Had I been on the reverse side of such a situation,, even as a trained magi, I would have teleported out of the city and regrouped with my allies, and if I did choose to remain for some reason, I wouldn't go anywhere near that scene. While clearing the city of enemies, we took great care to take as many as possibly alive, even some who resisted violently when it was possible. The horde killed ever man, woman, and child in Theramore without offering them the chance to leave, and those people had done nothing wrong, unlike the scheming Sunreavers. As with my broader partial explanation for the current state of the Sin'dorei race, orcs are without question the provocateur here. Garrosh wanted the Bell; Garrosh no doubt placed heavy pressure upon the Sin'dorei to get it, given that they would stand the greatest chance of being able to slip into Darnassus. When all efforts by rogues and the like failed, as Lady Jaina indicated they did, the Horde's only remaining option to get at the Bell was the Sunreavers, and instead of remembering the greater calling to which they were serving in Dalaran instead of out fighting in the factional war, the Sunreavers readily forgot their allegiance to the Kirin Tor, and used the portion of Dalaran under their command as a de-facto horde military base to aid in the theft. Any Sunreaver who heard even whispers of the plot, which the mission logs indicate was most, if not all of them, could have come forward and put an end to the whole thing. They chose instead to keep quiet, forgetting about the Dalaran armistice and all they and the Kirin Tor had built together, and betrayed Dalaran to placate a bloodthirsty orc who destroyed an entire city without cause or provocation. How anyone supporting threes actions can claim to be on the side of righteousness is beyond me, and the crying about innocents is nothing but a shield for their war crimes. War is terrible, and innocents have died in every war that has ever been fought. The horde and the Sunreavers started this war, and if they were that concerned about the death of innocents, they shouldn't have bombed Theramore, or violated the peace of Dalaran. I will restate how horrible the timing of these events were however, since had the theft taken place as little as a week later, maybe it would have been enough time for Lor'themar and Varian to come to terms, and the whole thing never would have happened, maybe. As for the longer term, the only way to help the Sin'dorei overcome their rage is to end the domination of orcs over them, and to allow them peaceful relations with other Kaldorei. I am hopeful that when this Garrosh Hellscream is vanquished, which I have every expectation he will be given that his allies seem to dislike him even more than his enemies, that there can be an opportunity to approach the Sin'dorei without orc meddling. They have lost much of their dignity, but one thing they have not lost is their pride, but that pride is misplaced, for there is no honor in treachery, or in following a power-hungry orc, but prideful as the Sin'dorei are, the rage they now focus at Lady Jaina, which is simply the old "Remember the Sunwell!" rage refocused, is very strong, and the only way this can change anytime soon is through the military means. They must be beaten, along with the orcs, humbled, and then the civilian population healed from the bottom up, allowing new, wise leaders to emerge that would make their ancestors proud, not the rage-filled shadows of their ancestors I face on the battlefield. If the Sin'dorei do not regain their wisdom soon, but do learn the true might of the Sunwell, then Elune save us all...